This is my biggest project yet! I've decided to rank all the biggest songs and albums to make it big here in Australia by how well they did on our charts from 1970 to 2009. The reason I'm not including the 2010's and beyond is because let's face it, I want this list to be a celebration of all the biggest and best songs to appeal to us Aussies and I feel that the vast majority of songs and albums that made it big after 2009 won't have the lasting cultural impact that even amid level hit from 1973 still has decades later. I'll be including stats from both the ARIA AND AMR charts meaning that all singles from mid-1988 onwards as well as albums that charted between mid-1988 and late 1998 will have two entries on this list to showcase how well they did on each chart (you'll know the difference when an entry has THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY rather than my commentary on it.) One final thing, this will be presented as a countdown, meaning that I'm breaking tradition by having each entry be more successful than the last as opposed to the opposite like every other list on this site.
#1200
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1199
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1198
It's a bit odd that Barbara ray would only find success once she left her native Scotland for South Africa, even then, it was mainly here in Australia as her fellow Brits ignored her brand of country pop when she migrated out of the UK. As with most artists from a non-western country, she was way more successful in her homeland than she was internationally.
#1197
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1196
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#1195
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1194
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1193
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1192
We have another ballad to feature from Rod Stewart on this site, this one being the first major hit he had both solo and as part of a group as it was due to this ballad's success that the band he was in at the time found massive success with one of their albums (that band being the Faces.)
#1191
Many consider this to be the sellout of the century as Steven Tyler and company, while known for their sentimental side, are best known for their often-aggressive rock and roll numbers. Here we have their theme to the Bruce Willis flick Armageddon which happens to star Steven's daughter Liv Tyler, thus explaining why they contributed to the films soundtrack to begin with.
#1190
This was the only successful album to come from Gabrielle Cilmi, mainly for its lead single becoming a surprise hit throughout the world given how people found it to be sickly sweet and innocent despite the song claiming that she was anything but. A massive controversy involving her being intoxicated at the ARIA awards this year (despite being underage) prevented her from finding any further success.
#1189
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1188
Following the success of her debut album, Whitney felt she was confident enough to do away with all of the guest artists and such release an album where she was front and center all the way through. Though the album was a success, many audiences of colour complained she was selling out to a Caucasian crowd which affected her enough for her next album to be more urban oriented.
#1187
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1186
While he was never exactly the most successful artists in Australia, Paul Kelly did have enough of a legacy for this greatest hits package to become a huge success for him about a decade after his last big hit "To her door." Indeed, several of his songs have endured on oldies stations more so than some of the biggest hits of all time down under.
#1185
There didn't seem to be any signs of Neil's popularity slowing down in the mainstream given how he released this album around the time Countdown launched and swept away many of his earlier contemporaries from the decade. Such as the power of his popularity if he could thrive while the likes of Tony or Orlando and Harry Nilsson couldn't.
#1184
Miley Cyrus is another artist who did much better on our digital charts throughout the decade, however her older brother really benefitted from this format given how the one and only hit he had with his band managed to actually go to number one on those charts as opposed to it missing out on our main charts.
#1183
This was the Veronicas biggest hit on the digital charts as it was in every other format here in Australia, although I would've thought this would do better on that format given how they fitted in with the emo rock scene of the moment even if I wouldn't exactly say their music was emo the same way that Good Charlotte and Panic at the disco was.
#1182
I honestly would've been dumbstruck if Kanye West wasn't more popular on our digital charts back in the day than he was on our physical charts, in fact it's worth noting that "Gold digger" charted on the digital charts during its initial launch which was months after it fell off the main charts due to it being pulled from shelves back in the day.
#1181
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1180
To think that this is the biggest hit in the Rolling stones career in Australia, granted this is mainly due to a lack of competition this song had upon its initial release here as many of their other tracks had to fight with the likes of the Beatles and other artists from the height of the British invasion but still. At least it's a song that's still well remembered by the general public to this day.
#1179
Following the demise of his band Wham, George Michael decided to continue in the pop direction he established for himself during his time with his partner in crime Andrew Ridgely. The results were his solo album named after this signature track from him which was a huge success for British superstar.
#1178
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1177
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1176
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1175
This was one of only two hits that Atomic Kitten had here in Australia, I'm guessing because we Aussies weren't that interested in the UK pop scene as you've likely noticed a lack of British artists on these lists so far compared to our local scene and American artists. Still, they were quite big in NZ and their native UK given how they managed to score multiple hits in those countries with this type of ballad.
#1174
This was one of two big hits that Feargal Sharkey had in Australia, I bring this up here because this was written by Maria McKee (of "Show me heaven" fame) and that his other hit "You little thief" was written by her ex Benmont Tench which means this guy was singing the ups and downs of their relationship throughout his album. I'm guessing this is why said album was a commercial success for him.
#1173
This was the first of only two hit singles that Timbaland achieved as a lead artist here in Australia, the other was with Katy Perry at the start of the new decade which seems to be the opposite of this track with Keri Hilson as that song is about a post breakup while this was about two people hooking up with each other. This was Keri's only hit here, although she had much more success over in NZ and her native America.
#1172
Just a fair warning that you won't be seeing "Thank you" from Dido on this list, this is because that song wasn't released as a single here in Australia to avoid it stealing success from this haunting track from Eminem about an obsessed fan of his which has since become the term used for these types of people in fandoms. For what it's worth, this song underperformed in NZ where Dido's track was released as a single.
#1171
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1170
Several years after David Cassidy's popularity dwindled out in the music scene, his younger brother Shaun Cassidy stepped in and was able to achieve massive success along the likes of other conventionally attractive young men who didn't necessarily have the best vocals of their generation. Shaun's popularity peaked here with his rendition of an Eric Carmen staple.
#1169
This was Rod Stewart's foray into disco music, a foray which paid off big time for him as this is his second biggest hit behind "Maggie may" from earlier in the decade likely due to him expanding past his core audience of those who like him for his sentimental ballads. Of course, beauty is in the eye of the beholder so I can understand if you're not a fan of this song due to thinking he's a narcissist for presenting himself as a sex god.
#1168
This was all set to become another flop for Enrique Iglesias given how it had such a slow climb to the top of the charts worldwide, however it received a sudden boost when it was chosen as the unofficial theme song to the 9/11 attacks as it would play over news coverage of the aftermath of the disaster. This allowed the album it serves as the lead single for to become a massive success for the Latin crooner.
#1167
It seemed like Anastacia would be a one album wonder given how her second album was a massive flop throughout the world, that wasn't the case given how her third album was a big comeback for her in Australia and throughout Europe largely thanks to its lead single which blended gospel with pop rock in a way that no one had done around this time. It proved to be a massive hit here in Australia more than anywhere else.
#1166
While this wasn't the debut single from Olivia Newton John (we'll look at that entry way down this list) it was the song that made her a household name given how it was easily one of the biggest hits of the decade here in Australia for the British born (at the time) country singer. It was due to this song's success that she decided to permanently migrate to Australia, at least until she decided to migrate to America a decade later.
#1165
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1164
This was Fergie's biggest solo hit from her solo album, it's a song that showcases her talents as a vocalist which is perhaps why it remains her biggest hit despite it being far from the first song you think of when going over her catalogue. I guess if she had of released this as the lead single from the Dutchess then it would've not only been even bigger (if that was at all possible) but also a signature track in her catalogue.
#1163
This is one of the less well remembered songs to become a massive success in Australia back in the day, even so it's easy to see how this was a big hit here given how joyous and happy the song is. Pilot did score a second hit with "Magic" which became a surprise hit for them in America of all places.
#1162
Most people will likely be more familiar with Madonna's rendition from the theatrical version of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Evita; however, it was originally a hit for Julie Covington when the story was little more than a concept album where it became one of the biggest hits of the decade for her. She made the strange decision to not appear on the stage version of the album, being replaced with Elaine Paige instead.
#1161
It looked like Shakira would be a one album wonder as her second album in English failed to catch on in the English-speaking market, however this bonus track from the album released this year saved the album likely due to it being a song about Shakira's Columbian heritage complete with production and vocals from Wyclef Jean. It was a huge hit back in the day and likely would've been even bigger if it were released now.
#1160
OK this is a song that I've always had negative feelings towards due to how misguided the execution was, I will say that there were good intentions behind this song but unfortunately the way the song guilt trips its audience into buying it to support its cause rubbed people the wrong way and continues to do so to this day.
#1159
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1158
Even though this wasn't their debut album, this was the album which made AC/DC (or Acadaca as we Aussies like to call them) into a household name due to it spawning some of their more memorable songs as hits upon its initial release. Even though this wasn't the biggest album down under, it nonetheless sparked international interest in the band which resulted in them getting huge crossover appeal throughout the decade.
#1157
Although this didn't spawn any hit singles like the other two albums I've featured on this site, this was nonetheless a huge success for Brian Cadd following the success of his earlier entry on this list and no doubt led to him having one more hit before Countdown made him irrelevant for some reason.
#1156
They certainly had an amazing run with their first three albums, so a greatest hits package was inevitable from the Corrs which became a massive success for the family band upon its initial release even if it led to them struggling to retain their popularity moving forward in the decade.
#1155
They had an amazing run throughout the 70's not just here in Australia but internationally, so it makes sense that the band would release a greatest hits package detailing the journey they had made in such a short amount of time and for it to be a huge success for them. This sadly was a bit of a curse for the band here as they wouldn't have another hit for ten years when they came back with "Love is a bridge."
#1154
Bon Jovi were on a roll when they released their greatest hits package which led to them scoring the biggest hit of their career, this led to their next album being more in line with adult contemporary than any of their previous work up until this point. It remains a polarising point in their career to this day, many saying they felt betrayed by this change in direction while others saying they deserved the success.
#1153
One of the biggest albums of the decade to make it big thanks to heavy endorsement on Triple J, this was the debut album from the Australian alternative band George who made a huge splash in our mainstream thanks to the dulcet vocals of lead singer Katie Noonan which have been ranked up with the likes of Kate Ceberano and Wendy Matthews as among the finest voices to come from Australia.
#1152
This was a very productive decade for Leo Sayer given how he scored two of the biggest albums of the 70's, here he has a greatest hits package to overlook the journey he made from his humble beginnings, although the journey wouldn't end here as he had further success in the 80's.
#1151
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1150
This albums name changes depending on where you're from, although considering both Corroboree and Waiata roughly translates to a traditional owner of a land, I think it's safe to say that this album was dedicated to the indigenous groups of both countries even though the album has nothing to do with either group it named after thematically. This political push didn't seem to hamper or enhance the albums popularity.
#1149
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1148
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#1147
It looked like the third album from the Bangles would be a huge commercial disappointment worldwide, however much like their previous album, a huge chart topper from the album saved it from flopping in the form of this heartfelt ballad which some have described to be creepy due to Suzanna Hoffs performance. I personally disagree as she's too earnest and lovestruck for it to be intentionally creepy, although it didn't prevent the girls from breaking up this year.
#1146
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1145
Col Joye was one of the biggest names in Australian music during the 60's, that said, it was surprising to see him score a massive success with this ballad given how it had been several years since he touched our charts with one of his tracks.
#1144
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1143
This was already becoming a huge success during the final months of John Lennon's lifetime, although it's hard to deny that this song's true success came from the aftermath of his senseless assassination performed by someone who quite frankly doesn't deserve to be named on this site. Regardless of how you feel about him in retrospect, there's no denying that how he died was a tragedy and that no one deserves to go the way he did.
#1142
This is widely considered to be Sherbet's signature tune and rightfully so, it's by far their most mature work as they incorporate cricket metaphors in order to describe the infidelity of their partner in this song. Sadly, the rest of their catalogue wasn't nearly this ambitious as it was mainly used to appeal to teenage girls.
#1141
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1140
This was a song that showcases a more sexually provocative side of Justin Timberlake given how it has lyrics alluding to BDSM which I'm surprised were unedited for the radio back in the day. It was an easy hit for the former N sync member given this was back in the day where former child stars moved into adulthood in the most sexual (and some might say tacky) was possible.
#1139
Here's the first hit that the Mixtures had here in Australia, as you've noticed, this is a cover of the Mungo Jerry track from around this time (don't worry we'll look at that version shortly.) This was part of a trend where Australian bands and artists would churn out their (in my opinion) inferior covers of a popular track of the moment which would steal the success of the international version of the song.
#1138
One of the more divisive films to be released this decade was Flashdance, mainly because people feel that while the imagery is striking even for its time, there isn't much of a story to it which makes the film feel meandering at times (I disagree but can see where people are coming from.) One thing many people will agree with is how amazing the theme song is, so much so it was the second academy award that Irene Cara won this decade after her theme to Fame.
#1137
I'm sorry but I always found this song to be rather annoying, in fact it's part of the sub-genre from around this time I've dubbed as nursey pop. Basically, it's a song so childish and precocious that it can easily be mistaken for a nursey rhyme, which I'm sure was what made this type of track a success back in the day. Surprisingly, this was so huge that it managed to crossover to Europe and even top the UK charts.
#1136
It's crazy to think that there's an earlier version of this ballad from Badfinger of all people given how many will either think of this version or the Mariah Carey cover from the 90's when the title is brought up. Even though this was Nilsson's only hit here in Australia, it was instrumental for making his album a huge success back in the day, suggesting that his subsequent failures were due to disappointment from us Aussies.
#1135
This was the first song that MJ released following the final stages of his plastic surgery which transitioned him from a man of colour to a Caucasian, naturally this was meant to be a song that inspires racial harmony from a man who have a very wide demographic regardless of their skin colour.
#1134
It seemed that Janet and her fanbase couldn't wait for the actual tenth anniversary of her breakthrough album Control before she released this greatest hits package and her fans made it an instant success, I bring this up because the album is a bit of a lie since it was released a year earlier than it would suggest. Her popularity would dwindle after this; however, she was still a household name for another nine years.
#1133
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1132
Following the success of his tribute to Andrew Lloyd Webber, Michael Crawford decided to release another album which was meant to showcase him as a more contemporary crooner in the music scene. It was a success here in Australia due to Phantom of the opera being on tour here, however it flopped everywhere else due to crooners being pushed aside for the likes of more modern music trends.
#1131
Although he achieved success with his wife Yoko Ono prior to this album (stay tuned for one of those albums later down this list) this was the first album John Lennon released all by himself which was an instant success thanks to the popularity of its title track.
#1130
This was the penultimate album to be released from CCR, their final album was also a modest success but not a huge one which is why it won't be appearing on this list, probably for the best as it is a far cry from their material, I've featured on this list so far.
#1129
This was the penultimate album that Elton John released that had his partner in crime Bernie Taupin as his official songwriter, that is until the two patched things up in the early 80's which resulted in their second biggest album Too low for zero (behind Goodbye yellow brick road that is.) Personally, I blame "Island girl" for why their winning streak came to a sharp decline after the success of this album.
#1128
Following the success of their debut album from earlier on this list, Skyhooks struck while the iron was hot with their sophomore album which further proved that they had more insightful things to say about the state of the world than their main rivals Sherbet. I should point out that while they weren't strictly a political band, all of their best-known songs did have something to say about the political climate of the decade.
#1127
Even though Ace of base were still making music during this point of the decade, it appears this German trio decided they wanted to steal the crown from the Swedish quartet of fusing reggae with europop which resulted in this huge success for them. It took a little while for this to take off in Australia, however once it did it felt like it would never leave the airwaves.
#1126
So Cocktail isn't a good movie, granted I'm no Tom Cruise fan but I can tolerate him in films such as Rain man and A few good men provided the story is as good as those flicks. I guess the saving grace from the film is that it did revive the career of the Beach boys following a long dry spell from the mainstream (save for a medley of theirs from earlier in the decade.) Even then, there's people who don't think this song was worth their revived popularity.
#1125
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1124
This was one of the biggest hits of the decade here in Australia, it's the first of only two hits that Easybeats frontman Stevie Wright had several years after the demise of said band and a song that promised him a long and prosperous solo career that didn't end up happening once Countdown launched later in the year. At least the song's legacy remains as strong as ever due to a cover from 2005 made for charity.
#1123
If you ever wondered why the lyrics on this breakthrough single from Shakira were strange, that's because it's an English version of a song that was popular in the Spanish speaking parts of the world that was given a one for one translation of the lyrics. This didn't prevent this song from being a massive hit for the Columbian star worldwide as it introduced her to a wider audience.
#1122
This version may seem very different compared to the one that wound up being a huge international success for Kylie Minogue, this is because it was originally made without the assistance of Stock Aiken and Waterman and was more of a vanity project for Kylie following the popularity she had on Neighbours. It's surprise success assured audiences of her singing talents which led to her success in the music industry.
#1121
I feel this song winning the academy award for best original song was what sunk Titanic's reputation back in the day, admittedly it did nothing to prevent the film from becoming the highest grossing movie of the twentieth century as people flocked to theatres to watch the film, but it did start this annoying backlash towards it and Celine herself that I'm glad the internet has long since moved on from.
#1120
While I am a massive fan of this iconic Australian duo, I have to admit that I kind of agree with the criticism that people have given this track over the years. It does feel like an Air supply track if that duo existed past the early 80's and believe me, I'm no fan of those guys. That said, it does remain their biggest hit in their career worldwide, so obviously this had massive appeal to millions around the world.
#1119
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1118
Although the Irish band did achieve sound success with their debut album throughout the year in Australia (mainly due to "Linger" becoming a surprise hit for them in America) this was the song that made them a household name here thanks to its politically charged lyrics delivered by Dolores O'Reidon's powerful vocals.
#1117
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1116
Following the success of their breakthrough single "Set you free," this British trance group decided to remix the Bee gees classic from Saturday night fever by recording several rap verses to replace the verses from the original which allowed this to become their biggest hit in several parts of the world. This wasn't even the last time they achieved a hit with this feat as "Da ya think I'm sexy" was also a massive success for them.
#1115
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1114
Although the Osmonds never found much success here in Australia, that didn't prevent their key member from finding a ton of success as a solo artist as this is one of many entries from Donny Osmond on this list. At least MJ appeared earlier on this list with his solo breakthrough, otherwise I'm sure this will spark an unwanted debate on how this kid copied the work of a much more talented kid of colour and found more success to boot.
#1113
Although these guys achieved massive success in NZ and their native America with "It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday," this track which was originally released as the theme song to the Eddie Murphy flick Boomerang (which isn't among his better films sadly) was what broke the RNB boy band into a wider market thanks to their vocal harmonies and Nathan's spoken word verse.
#1112
We haven't seen Cher on one of these lists for a while, have we? Well, here she is with the album which many argue introduced autotune into the music industry as the title track was the first hit to become as such with the tool. Thankfully the rest of the album doesn't have this gimmick, meaning that Cher only used the program as a feature to signal her comeback rather than to hide her perceived vocal deficiencies.
#1111
I bet you weren't expecting to see Janis Ian have one of the most successful albums of the year, indeed she saw massive success with this album likely due to her appearing on Countdown to perform the lead single which helped it become a huge hit in the southern hemisphere. She would prove to be a one album wonder with this entry as she wasn't able to find any success with her subsequent follow ups.
#1110
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1109
This was the only notable hit that American RNB group Allure managed to have throughout their career, although like many RNB songs this decade, it took a while for this to become a success in Australia due to us slowly warming up to the genre compared to the rest of the world. This is a cover of a Lisa Lisa and the Cult jam track from the 80's, although I think it's safe to say that this is the more memorable hit.
#1108
This is one of those bands I could've sworn were so much more successful than they actually were, admittedly I'm more familiar with their 00's material which seems to be when digital piracy was at the peak of its popularity which likely affected their overall success. In any case, we have this debut album from the band which you guessed it, received heavy promotion from Triple J to boost its popularity.
#1107
(THIS IS THE ARIA ENTRY)
#1106
It took them seven albums, but the Hunters and collectors were finally able to achieve massive success with one of their albums given how hugely success this was for them. It's worth noting that these guys were very popular in our alternative scene and even saw moderate success over in NZ throughout the 80's, and indeed their popularity would continue well into the 90's with their subsequent follow ups.
#1105
As you've probably noticed on these lists, we haven't seen many musicians of colour to make it big with their albums in Australia. One of the rare exceptions was Robert Cray who managed to score a massive hit this year with his first solo album likely due to how smooth the album is compared to everything else coming out at the time. I should point out that we were promoting our local talent over these artists more than anything.
#1104
This is the only other album I'll be featuring from Destiny's child on this site, mainly because their final album Destiny fulfilled was a bit too much of a sleeper hit later in the decade to qualify for this site, I'm afraid. Indeed, this penultimate album from the (now) trio also found itself bouncing in and out of popularity during its chart run due to its success mainly coming from the popularity of its singles.
#1103
What was it with this year and handing success off to music from films from four years prior? The Big chill was a critical and commercial success upon its initial release in 1983, and yet in only took until this year for the soundtrack to be a huge success in Australia and NZ.
#1102
This had a bit of a slow rise to its success here in Australia, mainly because it only became a success when the lead single was voted high on Triple J's year end list for 2001 which in turn made it a success for System of a down. The band is considered one of the better nu metal acts of the decade along the likes of Linkin Park and Korn, mainly due to their later material seeing them get political.
#1101
Dire straits had briefly broken up this year so that Mark Knopfler would work on his side project the Notting Hillbillies who would release one album in 1990 before reuniting the band in 1991, to help keep fans satisfied while he was off with this project, he released this greatest hits package which was a huge success proving they likely would've preferred it if he didn't break up the band around this time.
